How do you Adapt Activities for Participants with Disabilities

Some people who either have been born with a disability, or become disabled later in life, may feel that their lives are not going to be as exciting or as rewarding as it would have been if they were not disabled. This is not necessarily the case if you look at your situation with an open mind. Some children who have been born with a disability may be sheltered from the world by their parents as they are growing up, so that they do not risk getting hurt trying something that the doctors feel that they are not able to do, when other parents of people with disabilities treat their children as they would any other child, and let them at least try to do the things that the doctors have told them and their parents that they would never be able to do.

People with different disabilities may not be able to do one sport or another, but they certainly can find one that they are more than capable of doing with their disability, even if they have to make modifications to be able to participate in the sport. Some sports that have been modified to fit “special needs” are as follows:

Wheelchair Basketball: The rules may be a little bit different than your everyday average basketball game, but it is still fun for all of those involved. One of the rules that is changed, is that there is no, “traveling” in wheelchair basketball. Someone playing basketball from their wheelchair may put the basketball on their lap, and go as fast as they can without dropping the ball onto the floor and get down by the net and shoot it, in hopes that the ball will go in.

Another sport that can be done from a wheelchair, that may take a little bit more skill, practice, and patience, is tennis. You have to juggle the racket while moving your wheelchair around the court to get the ball back onto the other side of the net after it has only bounced once. Some people after practicing for months, and maybe even years, are really good at being able to multitask to do this sport really well.

Another favorite that can be done no matter what your limitations are, as long as the equipment is modified to fit the individuals needs, is snow skiing. For those who have ever seen someone who is visually impaired skiing, it will leave you with all sorts of mixed feelings of joy and happiness, among other things. When you are growing up with a disability, one of the things that is most important to you, is your independence, and sports is a great way to be able to accomplish this goal.